McDermott on standby after Short undergoes surgery

Josh Philippe is in the frame to make his T20I return, while Ben McDermott is also in the mix for an international comeback, after Matt Short was forced to undergo surgery on his finger this week.

McDermott will join Australia's T20I squad in Canberra as cover for Short, who underwent a procedure on his right ring finger in Sydney on Monday after the previous evening's ODI against India.

Short suffered a severe cut after his digit got caught between the ball and the turf on an attempted slips catch off Josh Hazlewood during the second ODI in Adelaide.

The allrounder was patched up and struck a team-high 74 in the Aussies' successful run chase. He then made 30 and bowled four overs in the ensuing game in Sydney.

But medicos decided surgery was necessary to 'clean up' the top of his finger. It's understood he now has stitches holding together the nasty wound that ran below the nail.

Short will remain with the T20 squad in the hope he will return later in the series.

Philippe stands as the most likely beneficiary of his absence in the middle order, although captain Mitch Marsh has confirmed wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, who is fit again after a calf injury, would return to bat at three.

That is the spot Short had been used in for Australia's most recent T20s in New Zealand. McDermott is now the squad's back-up batter with Glenn Maxwell to only join the squad from the third T20I in Hobart onwards.

Cameron Green is also sitting out this series as he focuses on his Test preparation.

McDermott missed the start of the Australian domestic summer while he played in the Caribbean Premier League but has since returned to hit 42 and 14 in the One-Day Cup for Tasmania.

The 30-year-old, who played the last of his 25 T20Is in December 2023, moved back to Hobart during the winter for personal reasons after being released by Queensland.

Australia's team was already set for some upheaval over the five-game series with Josh Hazlewood and Sean Abbott to exit the squad mid-series to play in the Sheffield Shield before Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis and Mahli Beardman replace them.

"We do have guys coming in and out, but I think that's been the nature of the white ball teams over the last couple of years, with the schedules and how busy it is," Marsh told reporters on Tuesday.

"We've got some guys going back and playing Shield cricket and certain guys coming back from injury.

"It's just about being really flexible with that. Everyone understands their role when they do come into the team, and that's it's about being really clear on that."

Adam Zampa is also unlikely to feature in the series as he awaits the birth of his second child, though the door has been left ajar for him to return for the final two matches in Queensland.

Australia v India T20Is 2025

Australia squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott (games 1-3), Xavier Bartlett, Mahli Beardman (games 3-5), Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis (games 4-5), Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood (games 1-2), Ben McDermott (standby player) Glenn Maxwell (games 3-5), Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Matthew Kuhnemann, Mitchell Owen, Josh Philippe (wk), Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Tanveer Sangha

India squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar

October 29: First T20I v India, Manuka Oval, Canberra, 7:15pm AEDT

October 31: Second T20I v India, MCG, Melbourne, 7:15pm AEDT

November 2: Third T20I v India, Bellerive Oval, Hobart, 7:15pm AEDT

November 6: Fourth T20I v India, Gold Coast Stadium, Gold Coast, 7:15pm AEDT

November 8: Fifth T20I v India, The Gabba, Brisbane, 7:15pm AEDT